A Prank Gone Wrong
by turtlegirl42
Summary: Electro has the perfect prank... which sparks a prank war between all of the super villains! Who will be humiliated the most? And will the superheroes eventually join in on the fun?
1. Electro's 'Perfect' Prank

**A Prank Gone Wrong**

* * *

Max Dillon had the perfect prank.

Max, also known as Electro, was a prankster at heart. He loved playing tricks and pranks on people, and today was April Fool's Day; the perfect day to pull one. And he had the most excellent idea…

Max whistled as he walked down the bustling Manhattan street. Now he just had to find a suitable candidate for his prank.

And who should Electro see dart into an alleyway at that moment than Doctor Octopus.

_Aha,_ he thought. _Perfect._ The scientist had a short temper, so Max would have to make a break for it once he had pranked him; but it would so be worth it.

Electro caught up with his fellow criminal, walking up behind him. "Heya, Doc! How are you doing?" he asked jovially.

Doc Ock whipped around, recognizing Electro's voice. "I am fine, thank you," he said gruffly. Electro held out a hand for him to shake. After hesitating for a moment, Doc Ock took it, casting his suspicions aside. Dillon would not harm him. He was an ally, after all. Even if it was—

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" he screamed.

When Electro had taken Doc Ock's hand to shake, he had released a small amount of electricity from his fingertips. A little more powerful than your average joy buzzer, but not enough to seriously hurt an average person.

Unfortunately for Electro, Dr. Otto Octavius was not the average person. Instead of receiving a small shock, he gave a strangled scream of surprise and pain as he was electrocuted, finally collapsing to the ground and lying still.

"April Fools?" Electro said lamely.

He looked at his hands, baffled. He hadn't used that much electricity at all. Surely he must have done something wrong… Then he looked at the metal arms hanging limply from Doc Ock's side and remembered: _**metal conducts electricity**_. How could he have been so _stupid?_

He kneeled down next to Doc Ock, shaking him violently. "C'mon, wake up, wake up!" he whispered, hoping he hadn't accidently killed him.

Max gave up after a moment and stood up. Oh, God. He had killed the . Electro wasn't _friends _with Doc Ock, but they were acquaintances; allies. Dillon would never kill him.

Which he had obviously just done.

Oh, shit. Oh, shit, shit, shit. How was he going to get rid of the body now? Explain away the super villain's disappearance? Not only that, he actually felt a little guilty for killing him. Nobody, save Spiderman, of course, deserved to die from electrocution.

Doc Ock slowly regained consciousness, blinking a few times as he slowly sat up. "Ugh…" he mumbled. What the hell had happened? Then he remembered, and, looking up, saw Electro standing there. That sonuvabitch… Still weak from being electrocuted, he stood up. "Dillon…" he growled menacingly. He was going to tear that apart for doing this.

Electro gave a start when he noticed Ock getting up. Oh, double shit. "It was an accident…" he began; but seeing the look on Ock's face, he forgot about explaining himself and ran in the other direction as fast as he could. So much for the perfect prank…


	2. Payback

**A Prank Gone Wrong**

**Chapter 2—Payback **

**Author's Note: This was originally a one-shot, but… I couldn't help but think about what one reviewer said, and I finally came up with an idea. This might just be it, **_**or**_** I might possibly make it longer. It might not be totally in-character, but it's intended to be funny. Enjoy!**

Doc Ock watched Max Dillon leave the small, modest house, slamming the front door. Electro walked down the street, no doubt headed towards The Bar With No Name for a night of drinking and partying with other criminals.

He emerged from where he had been hiding in the bushes. So, Max thought he could play a prank on _him_, did he? Despite the fact that Ock had beaten the crap out of Electro afterwards, he had still gotten away and told everyone that he had 'played the ultimate April Fool's joke on Doc Ock.' Ock still got funny looks and practically laughed at every time he met another villain on the street or at the bar.

Sure, beating Electro to a pulp had given him _some _satisfaction, but he really wouldn't be satisfied until Max Dillon had been as, if not more than, humiliated than he had been.

Doc Ock looked over his stash of toilet paper, silly string, and eggs, making damn sure he had everything. He wasn't going to be able to humiliate Electro without the right equipment, now was he?

He looked around, making sure that Electro was well and truly gone. Satisfied, a malicious grin spread across his face.

It was payback time.

Doc Ock picked up some eggs with his tentacles and began egging Electro's car. This was going to be fun…

The next morning, Max Dillon stumbled on the sidewalk on his way home, still half-drunk. Damn, what a night that had been! He had gotten totally trashed and had been hitting it up with some girl for half the night. He barely remembered any of it, but Max knew that he had had one hell of a time.

He walked up the sidewalk to his small, modest home…

And just stared.

Toilet paper was strung everywhere; on the eaves, wrapped around the porch, all over the roof… It made his already run-down house look absolutely ridiculous, with toilet paper draped everywhere. There was even toilet paper draped on the small trees lining his porch. There was multicolored silly string staining the windows…

In the driveway sat Electro's yellow van, which someone had egged. Egg shells were everywhere, on the driveway; on the windshield… The driver's door was open, and the inside of the van was covered with eggs as well. It also looked as though someone had keyed his car.

All in all, it was a total mess. His house and van looked ridiculously vandalized…

Who the hell had done this? Probably the group of rowdy agers down the street. Needless to say, he was _very_ mad at whoever _had _done this. Electro stomped up to the porch and was about to yank open the front door when he noticed something… A note? What the hell?

Electro ripped the note off the door and read it.

**Max,**

**I hope you enjoy cleaning up all of that mess!**

**Sincerely,**

**Doctor Octavius**

Electro crumpled up the note in anger and disgust. Of course it had been Doc Ock! Who else could have gotten the toilet paper up that high on the roof?

Doc Ock had been sore with him over the prank Electro had pulled on him, but he hadn't thought that he would do _this_…

Well, he would soon find out that Electro wasn't a person to mess with, because now…

This was war.

**Author's Note: Hope you liked it! There are more chapters to come, I think, so stay tuned! And please do review, I appreciate your feedback!**


	3. Electro's Power Outage

**A Prank Gone Wrong**

**Chapter 3—Electro's Power Outage**

**Author's Note—Hi again! And so we have Chapter Three…All that I would like to say is "thank you" for all the reviews… Also I would like to ask all of you to make suggestions for possible pranks for future chapters. If you do make a suggestion, there is a REALLY good chance I will use it, so just throwing that out there. Thanks again, and enjoy this chapter!**

It took a while for Max Dillon to think of an appropriate prank to pull on Doc Ock. He wasn't the smartest apple in the bunch, and he was always picked on by the other members of the Sinister Six about it. Speaking of the Sinister Six, Dillon was pretty sure there was a meeting today, down in Ock's hideout.

Thinking about possibly going to the meeting gave him an idea…

Electro grudgingly went to the meeting, during which Doc Ock made a fool out of him and basically humiliated him. This was making him angry. Who did Otto think he was, getting to make all the shots? He _was_ the leader, but still… It wasn't fair that nobody else got to make any decisions. Electro was pretty sure he was going to quit the Sinister Six anyway.

After the meeting, everyone, including Doc Ock, left to go their separate ways; there was always something to do for a criminal in New York City.

Electro stayed behind, waiting until everyone was gone. When everyone had left, he went back into Doc Ock's house, which was a small, drab, condemned house. However, there was still electricity and running water (which Ock had adjusted).

Max Dillon went down to the basement, looking for something. It _had _to be here, in the basement. He knew this from years of being an electrician.

Suddenly, Electro grinned. He had found it.

The electricity-manipulating criminal went over to the grey electrical box that jutted out of the wall. He yanked it open. Yes, this was it. This was the generator box that controlled the electricity and water for this pitiful building.

And Electro was going to destroy it.

He stood back and powered up; readying his power. Then he released his power, sending many volts of electricity towards the generator box.

The electrical box shorted out, sparking and fizzling with energy. The small light in the basement went out, and that was when Electro knew he had succeeded. He grinned, a little proud of himself at a prank well done. He jotted down a quick little note to Doc Ock and left.

Later that evening, Dr. Otto Octavius returned to his little ramshackle home. Once he had gone through the door, he took off his coat. He was wet, tired, and exhausted, and all he wanted to do was go to bed. He went to flick the kitchen light on and—

Nothing happened. He flicked the light a few more times, but it still wasn't working. Damn light bulb must have blown. He went into the living room and flipped the light switch. Again, it didn't work. He checked all the lights in the house and concluded that something must be wrong with the switch box.

Otto stomped down the stairs to the basement. This little hellhole was more trouble than it was worth, but at least it was heated…

He went over to the switch box and just stared in shock.

The switch box had been completely fried; basically it was totally destroyed. The box sparked; and there were a few live wires on the ground.

Otto narrowed his eyes. He was pretty sure this didn't happen all by itself… He looked closer and discovered there was a note attached to the switch box. Now he knew who had done this. That stupid _fool…_

He read the note.

**Octavius,**

**Thanks for TPing my house, asshole.**

**Hope you have fun trying to fix this!**

**Sincerely, **

**Max Dillon**

**P.S. I raided your fridge. No sense in letting your food spoil!**

Otto seethed with rage. Who the hell did Dillon think he was? If he wanted to play these childish games, fine. Otto would certainly comply.

After all, humiliating people was _much_ more fun than manipulating them…

**Author's Note: What do you think? Thanks for reading! Please review, as I enjoy feedback!**


	4. Doc Ock's BreakIn

**A Prank Gone Wrong**

**Chapter 4—Doc Ock's Break-in**

**Author's Note: Chapter 4 cometh! Okay, I'm being silly here. But all I have to say is… enjoy!**

Otto Octavius threw the wrench down in disgust and asked himself again why he was doing this. Nuclear physicist he was, but he was no mechanic.

So why was he sitting in Max Dillon's apartment, trying to install water sprinklers in the front door foyer?

That was an interesting question, but Doc Ock had a simple answer.

Maxwell Dillon had screwed with Doctor Octopus for the last time.

Granted, he had thought some revenge was due for Dillon's initial April Fool's prank, but he hadn't thought that it would escalate into _this_. Electro cutting off all of the power to his home (and his lab! He had had important projects in the works that needed electricity) had been the last straw. That electric-manipulating idiot was going to _pay_.

Otto glanced again at the manual, held in front of him by a metallic pincer. He was having difficulty putting them together properly; but how hard could it be? After all, if he could create nuclear fusion, certainly he could put together a simple sprinkler system. Right? Right?

An hour and many mistakes and curse words later, it was done. Ock looked proudly upon his handiwork. Once Electro walked across the foyer, the sprinkler system would be triggered, effectively shorting out the villain. And Ock would have it all on camera.

That is, if he had installed the sprinkler system properly…

Ock assured himself that he had. After all, he had triple-checked it after he was finished. It had to work. It just _had_ to…

The super villain sat down at the kitchen table and waited…

Electro was practically skipping home (though he actually wasn't; super villains _never_ skip). He had just pulled off a successful robbery! Spider-Man hadn't been there to stop him this time! Perhaps he was more than just a B-Class villain after all.

Approaching the porch, Electro noticed that the front door was open. Hmmm… that was suspicious. He creeped up the front steps, peeking through the front doorway.

Sitting at the kitchen table was none other than Doctor Octopus himself, looking casual and nonchalant as he sat in one of Electro's chairs.

Max was fuming. How dare he break into his house! What did he think he was doing? Electro powered up, preparing to fry Doc Ock with electricity. That egotistical idiot had screwed with him for the last time.

ZZZZZAAAPPPPP! As Electro walked across the doorway, all powered up, Ock's sprinkler system kicked in, spraying the villain with water.

As you know, water and electricity don't mix well at all. So the end result was Electro sprawled on the kitchen floor, effectively shorting out the criminal. "Uggghhhh…" He was out cold for a minute, and he woke up to someone laughing. He looked up. Doc Ock was standing over him, a smug look on his face, having a laughing fit. "Now that…that was funny…"

"Get out of my house, Octavius," Electro said in a deadly whisper. "I'll give you ten seconds to leave before I kill you." He closed his eyes for exactly ten seconds. When he opened them, Ock was gone. So was his loot from the robbery.

Enraged, Electro picked up his cell phone that was sitting on the table. Doctor Octopus wanted to play dirty, did he? Well, when he was through, he would have ALL of Manhattan pranking Doc Ock. And he would laugh in his face…

Meanwhile, halfway across the city, Doctor Octopus was sitting in his lab. He suddenly realized that he had really jacked up the stakes, doing that to Electro. But the stupid idiot had deserved it. He also realized that Dillon would now probably turn the other villains against him (he wasn't very well liked as a super villain) and they would all start pranking him. It was time to make a phone call…

Otto picked up the phone and punched in some numbers. "Hello? Is Doctor Trainer there?" A pause, and then, "Hello, Carolyn. I know it's been a while, but would you be interested in a certain…proposition? Nothing important, really, but…" And he explained his situation to Carolyn, who heartily agreed to help him.

**Author's Note: Now the stakes are high! Who will side with who? And who will prevail in this super villain prank war? Read on to find out! A short note: In the comics, Doctor Carolyn Trainer was the assistant of Doctor Octopus, later donning the role.**


	5. Sanded

**A Prank Gone Wrong**

**Chapter 5—"Sanded" **

**Author's Note: As the title of the chapter suggests, we introduce the Sandman into our super-villain prank war! What side will our sandy super-villain be on? Well, my loyal readers, that's for me to know and for you to find out (not to worry! You most certainly will!) Enjoy!**

The two villains, known respectively as Sandman and Electro, stood in Doctor Otto Octavius's bedroom. Sandman stared at his fellow criminal blankly. "Tell me again what we're doing in Doc Ock's house," he said uneasily. "He would seriously kill us if he got back here and found us..."

The electric-manipulating villain waved a hand. "Don't worry. _Doctor Octavius_ won't be coming back anytime soon. I saw him leave this morning. Knowing him, when he's on one of his scientific stealing rampages, he won't be back until tonight." He gave Sandman a sideways glance. "And again, I already _told_ you what we're doing here. Octavius has humiliated _me_ for the very last time."

"Oh, yeah, now I remember..." Marko Flint said, finally remembering what Electro had told him just a week earlier. "You wanted me to put sand into everything of Octavius's."

"That's right," Max replied proudly. "This will be something for the ages."

"Yeah, but..."

"But what?" Electro snapped, a little annoyed that Sandman would doubt his master plan.

"But won't Ock know that it was me that did it? I mean, there's not too many people around that can—"

"Yes, of course he will! That's exactly the point, numbskull! I want that six-armed freak to know that I have people backing me! And besides, I'm paying you, aren't I?"

"Well, yeah, but everybody knows that—"

"Then shut up and do what I paid you to do!"

Sandman grinned. "Well, it's not every day that you get to prank an egotistical asshole like Doc Ock. So..." He formed his hand into a fist. "Like that stupid flame-boy of the Fantastic Four says, 'Sand on!'"

"It's 'flame on,' numbskull."

"I know. I made my own variation of his little catch phrase." With that, the Sandman's fist became that of sand. He opened up one of the drawers and wrung out his hand, spilling sand into the drawer. He did this for every dresser and desk drawer in the room. "Is that it, Max?" he asked when he was through.

Max grinned maliciously. "Oh, no. We've only just started."

When the Sandman was through, the bathtub and the kitchen sink were clogged with a multitude of sand, a small layer of sand coated the sheets on the bed, and he had made sure to put sand in all of the appliances, including the toaster, the microwave, the television, and most of Ock's equipment. Sandman looked at Electro with his eyebrows raised. "Did I do good?" he asked.

Electro clapped a hand on his fellow criminal's broad shoulder. "You have done well. You have done better than well. You have done an excellent job, my friend. Care to go get some pizza at my place? My treat."

A little over an hour later, Doc Ock got home from another successful raid. He had managed to successfully break into the military base with minimal carnage and obtain all of the uranium and plutonium he needed.

Ah, life was good. The maniacal scientist sank into an armchair, pleased with himself.

It was a few minutes before he discovered that the recliner he was sitting in felt...grainy. It was as though someone had put pebbles inside the seat. He stood up, brushing the seat. His hand came away with sand.

Hmmm. He had to admit to himself that that was strange, but nothing was going to ruin his good day. He would worry about it later.

Octavius went over to his laptop, turning it on.

He was greeting by a incomprehensible string of letters and numbers on his screen. He tried everything he knew, but could not get the computer to reboot or even do anything other than spew nonsense. He pressed a button to open the CD-ROM drive and a multitude of sand spilled out, creating a small pile of the substance on his desk.

Ock narrowed his eyes. So Electro was playing his little pranks again, was he? And this time (as he had suspected) he had gotten other villains to help. It seemed as though his former ally had gotten Sandman to do some of the dirty pranking work for him.

Hmmm... Ock walked around his house carefully, examining things to see what other damage Sandman had done.

It turned out he had done tremendous damage.

Sand was inconspicuously everywhere; inside all of the appliances, clogging his equipment, his drains, oh good Lord, even his underwear drawer!

Standing in the kitchen, Ock, fuming, discovered a note on the fridge.

**Hello Octavius!**

**You have just been 'sanded.' Hope you enjoy trying to remove sand out of everything you own!**

**Sincerely,**

**Max Dillon and Marko Flint**

The six-limbed scientist was furious! In an angry frenzy, he nearly smashed a window with one of his tentacles. But he told himself to calm down. As his late mother had once said, "Revenge is a dish best served cold."

Not only was he going to get revenge on both Electro and Sandman, he was going to throw a little blackmail into it as well. Maybe, just maybe, he could blackmail Max into stopping this whole ridiculous prank war. It was childish, and it was interfering with his work.

But the wheels of hilarious pranking were already in motion, and as he would soon discover, not even the Master Planner could stop them.

**Author's Note: To be continued! What villains will side with Ock? Will he successfully manage to blackmail Electro? Who will be pranked next, and how? Keep reading, and please do review!**


	6. Sand Castles

**A Prank Gone Wrong**

**Chapter 6—Sand Castles**

**Author's Note: It's time for revenge on the Sandman—Doctor Octopus style! Guest appearance by Carolyn Trainer.**

Doctor Otto Octavius had Herman Schultz pinned against the wall with two tentacles, while a flesh-and-blood hand had him by the throat. "I'll give you once last chance," he said in a deadly whisper, "to tell me where Marko Flint is before I kill you."

Herman Schultz, also known as the Shocker, nodded vehemently.

"You're going to tell me? Good," the other said, stepping back several feet as he took his hand off of the Shocker's throat. However, the two tentacles still held him firmly against the wall by his waist. "I would hate to have to kill you."

The Shocker gasped for breath before saying, "I think Marko is living at Max's house, Doc. Can't be too sure, though."

Having gotten the answer he wanted, Doctor Octopus released the Shocker, where he promptly slumped to the ground before getting up and brushing himself off.

"Thank you, Herman. Now, if you don't mind...?" Doc Ock said nonchalantly. He turned to leave.

"Hey, wait!" the Shocker yelled before he walked out the door.

Doc Ock turned around, annoyed. "What is it, Herman? I'm a busy man."

"Why are you looking for Marko?"

"Oh, surely you've heard of Max's stupidity?"

The Shocker wracked his brain. "Oh, yeah! He started some kinda prank war or something." He narrowed his eyes in concentration. "Max actually asked me to help me with it."

"And what did you do?" Ock asked, closing the open door. Obviously he was intrigued by this.

Herman frowned. "Told him no. It's stupidity, and if he wants to cross you, he can." Fear flickered in his eyes. "But I'm having nothing to do with it."

"Are you, now?" Doc Ock sat down at the decrepit kitchen table. "How about you help _me_ prank Max and his cronies?"

The Shocker pointed to himself. "_Me?_ You want me to work for you?"

He shrugged. "Why not? If you forget what I just did to you, I think it would work out perfectly."

Herman put a hand on his chin. "Tell ya what, Doc. I'll consider it."

"Good enough for me." The scientist fished in his pocket and took out a piece of paper. "Do you have a pen, Schultz?"

Herman took out a pen from his pocket. "Here ya go, Doc," he said, handing it to him.

Doctor Octavius scribbled something on the piece of the paper and handed both pen and paper back to Herman. "You can reach me at that number and that address. I'm sure I can trust you with it."

The Shocker glanced at the paper before saying nervously, "Yeah, I think you can trust me."

But Doc Ock was already gone.

Doctor Octavius decided to stop home before going to Electro's house again. Now that he knew where the Sandman was, he would have to think of some prank suitable for the likes of Doctor Octopus.

When he got through the door, he was startled to see Carolyn Trainer sitting at his kitchen table. "Hello, Otto," she said, smiling. "I was wondering when you'd get back from torturing everyone."

"Well, Carolyn," he said, trying not to show his shock. "What a pleasant surprise! What brings you here?"

"You asked for my help, Doctor. You're gonna get it," she said almost maliciously.

Now Otto remembered why he liked Carolyn so much. He sat down across from her. "I need to think of a suitable and embarrassing way to prank Marko Flint," he explained.

Carolyn smiled. "Getting right down to business, are we, Otto?"

"That's how I work. It isn't efficient any other way."

"Okay," she agreed. "Well, think about it, Otto. Marko Flint's the sand guy, right?"

"That's correct."

"Well, what happens when you put water on sand? It gets reeeallly muddy and malleable."

He shook his head. "Ingenious, Carolyn." He didn't know why he hadn't thought of it before. "Thank you." He stood up to leave.

"Can I come join you, Doctor?"

"No, sorry, Carolyn. This is a one-man job. Maybe next time."

She smiled. "I'll be waiting here, then."

"You do that." He flashed her a smile before going off to hunt down the Sandman...

It was fairly simple to find Electro's house; after all, Otto had broken into it twice already. In the back yard, he found a rather nice garden hose. Perfect. Now just to lure Marko out here... That shouldn't be too hard...

_Rap rap rap rap rap rap..._

Marko Flint looked up from the television. "Huh?" he said to himself. It seemed to be coming from the back door... He got up from the couch and went over to the back door. "Who's there?" he asked almost accusingly.

No answer. Confused, the Sandman made himself a living sand block before cautiously opening the door.

He got a rather nasty surprise as he saw Doctor Octopus in front of him, a rather malicious and cruel smile in his face. Sandman looked down at what he was holding in his hands.

A garden hose.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Max Dillon woke up with a start. Was that Sandman screaming like that? What was going on? He ran down the stairs. He didn't see Marko anywhere, but noted that the back door was open. He went out into the backyard...

Sandman wasn't there. But there was a rather large sandcastle sitting in the middle of the back yard. Doctor Octopus was behind it, adding sand to it with his tentacles.

"OCTAVIUS!" he roared. "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?"

Doc Ock peeked out from behind the sand castle and smiled. "I'm building a sand castle, Max. Do you like it?"

"Help," the sand castle moaned. "The bastard's got my clothes!"

"Dammit, Octavius! Don't you think you've gone a little too far this time?"

"Not at all." Octavius walked out from behind the living sandcastle. He held up a digital camera, a nasty grin on his face. "I think I have some things you might want..."

Electro lunged at Doc Ock. "Give me that!"

A tentacle pulled the camera away from him. "I don't think so..." he said, still smiling. He began to walk away with the tentacles propelling him. "You know where to find me!" he shouted before he was just a shadow on the roofs.

Electro smacked his forehead. "Dammit."

The sandcastle groaned. "Ugh... I think he still has my clothes!"


	7. Bedridden

**A Prank Gone Wrong**

**Chapter 7—Bedridden**

The lone light bulb swung from the ceiling, several moths flying around it. It gave little light on the kitchen table as Doc Ock swiped a few things from the fridge, sitting down at the table to eat them.

He looked at the clock hanging crookedly from the wall and sighed. It was getting quite late, and he should have eaten dinner hours ago. But, as usual, he had fallen into his work and had forgotten to. That had been happening more and more often, and the scientist knew that this meant he was nearing a breakthrough. He needed one—after all, he had been working on his current project for the past several months. Something would have to come through sooner or later.

Ock finished the last of his food and nonchalantly threw the dishes into the sink. He would deal with them tomorrow. He clomped into his workroom, straightening papers and such for a few minutes before he felt his eyelids continuously threatening to close. As much as he loathed sleep, it was time to go to bed.

He changed into his pajamas, which consisted of a warm pair of flannel pants. He wore no shirt. It was hard enough to sleep with the tentacles fused to his spine. Wearing a shirt to sleep just made things more difficult.

The scientist stretched a little. For some reason, he was more tired than usual, even though he had had a cup of coffee no more than an hour earlier. He blamed it on exhaustion from working so hard. Ock shut off the light in the room before he climbed into bed, and was asleep before his body hit the mattress.

No more than twenty minutes later, three figures emerged from the darkness. "Is he asleep?" one of them asked.

"Of course, dummy," a second figure hissed. "And be quiet, he might wake up."

"But didn't you drug his coffee so he'd be dead weight?" the third figure asked.

"Well, of course I did!" the second figure replied. "But still... Be quiet." He paused. "Rhino, do you have the adamantium wire?"

The biggest figure walked over to the bed where Ock was sleeping, a wrapped length of cord in his hands. "Yup, I sure do, boss."

"Well, what are you waiting for, then?" Electro asked. "Let's get to work."

…

Sunlight filtered through Otto's window in streams as he slowly opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling. He groaned softly, rubbing his head. He had a splitting headache, and for some reason, he was laying on his back. Otto never slept on his back, as it put strain on the tentacles and his spine.

Then why was he laying on his back with a horrendous headache? Not only that, but his legs ached as well. He had no idea why, but he wanted to know.

Then Otto Octavius made the mistake of trying to sit up.

He screamed with pain as he realized that he couldn't move. His tentacles! They were... paralyzed! _He_ was paralyzed...! What would he do? He turned his head desperately and discovered that he wasn't really paralyzed after all.

Somehow, his tentacles, all four of them, had been tied with wire to each of his bedposts. The pincers of the tentacles were tied up as well, preventing any escape. He knew, however, that the wire must be very strong to hold his actuators; after all, just one of them could lift a car and throw it several feet.

Otto tried to move his actual legs—if he could move them, he might be able to untie his actuators. His actuators could telescope several feet, so they would be able to propel him out of the bed and maybe free the actuators from the wire that was binding them.

Unfortunately, the effort to move his legs was to no avail. He looked down and realized _they_ were tied to the bed too—with strong rope. This accounted for the pain that he had felt in his legs before.

Otto stared at the ceiling for several minutes, for once at a loss to do. He knew, of course, who had been put up to this, and he wasn't happy about it one bit. But it wasn't like he could do anything about it. Right now, he was helpless.

Helpless... Otto cringed. Doctor Octopus was _never _helpless.

However, now it appeared that he was. He wasn't even wearing his glasses, so he could barely see anything but small blurs of objects laying around the room.

Otto turned his head, looking on the stand for anything that could help him. Ah, _there_ was something he could use to get help. Using one of his regular arms, he reached and grabbed the cell phone, holding it in his fist in triumph. He would use his phone to call for help, but first, he had a certain call to make...

Squinting, he punched in a number. It rang three times before the person on the other line picked up. "Max Dillon."

Ock scowled and said, very slowly and sinisterly, "This is Otto Octavius. I know you did this, Electro." He paused for effect. "I demand that you come back here and release me from this... predicament."

Electro chuckled loudly on the other line. "Of course, Doctor Octavius. Just tell us where your camera is, and I'll gladly call it a truce."

The camera... The digital camera that Otto had used to take embarrassing photographs and record video of Electro making a complete fool of himself. He also had footage of Sandman on there as well. He thought it over, furious. He was planning on blackmailing _Electro_ over that camera, not Electro blackmailing him.

"Well?" Electro asked, knowing he had Doc Ock in a corner.

"No. I refuse to tell you where it is," Ock snapped, being stubborn. He would get out of this with minimal embarrassment, and this was the only way to do so. "Go walk in front of a subway."

Electro laughed again, not phased in the slightest by Ock's hostility. "Alright. But have fun getting yourself out of that adamantium wire, you eight-limbed slimeball."

Ock hung up. That didn't turn out as well as he had hoped. He dialed several different numbers on the cell phone, this time having more luck. He hung up the phone and sighed. Now all he had to do was wait...

No more than twenty minutes later, he heard the satisfying smash of a couple windows and perhaps a door in the house. "In here!" he yelled as loud as he could.

They heard him, and in less than a minute, The Vulture, Shocker, and Mysterio were standing at the foot of his bed. Adrian Toomes, the Vulture, sniggered into his hand. Mysterio, his head being a globe, said nothing, just shook his head. Shocker rubbed his hand on his forehead. "You certainly have gotten yourself into a predicament here, Doctor Octavius," he said, before bursting out laughing. His laughter triggered everyone else, and soon all three villains were laughing uncontrollably.

"THIS ISN'T FUNNY!" Otto roared, effectively shutting all of them up. In a quieter voice, he said, "Is there any way you can get me out of this? The wires are made of adamantium."

"Well, to start, we should untie his legs," Vulture pointed out. "That, at least, is made of rope."

"Why don't you get to it, then?" Ock demanded. "I can barely feel them."

"Alright, alright, don't get your panties in a bunch!" Shocker snapped, though he was grinning. He would gladly help Doc Ock out, but it was tempting to start laughing again. In fact, it was even more tempting to whip out his cell phone and start taking pictures of this. Doc Ock, helpless—it would be so funny...

Shocker then thought about what Ock would do once he got out if he did that and shuddered. "Come on," he said to Vulture and Mysterio. Within a few minutes, the ropes had been cut with Mysterio's utility knife.

Once the last rope had been cut, Ock's tentacles lifted him away from the bed, and he stood next to the villains, examining the wires that his actuators had been tied to the bedposts with. After a moment, he nodded, frowning. "Yes, this is adamantium wire. Electro wasn't lying."

"Electro?" Vulture asked incredulously. "Electro did this to you?"

Ock sighed. "Yes," he admitted, embarrassed. "It's a prank."

"_This _was Electro's next prank?" Shocker replied, shocked. "Wow. That's no prank. That's just dirty, low, and nasty."

Mysterio and Vulture agreed. 

"Now, any ideas on how to get rid of these wires? They're welded together," Ock said, interrupting them.

"A chain saw?" Vulture suggested.

Doc Ock cringed. What if one of them slipped and cut off one of his actuators? That would be painful to the point of unconsciousness. And that would be no fun at all. But it wasn't like he had a choice. The scientist sighed. "If one of you has a chain saw, I'm all for it."

Vulture was the one that owned the chainsaw. He came through the window holding it. It was a rather big chainsaw, and Ock shuddered. If that chainsaw went through one of his actuators...

The Vulture started up the chainsaw and grinned. "Just hold still, Doctor," he said, coming towards the upper right tentacle tied to the bed.

Ock gave the chainsaw toting supervillain a killer glare and said, "I don't think so, Adrian." He pointed to the man's hands, which were holding the running chainsaw. "Your hands are shaking, old man."

"They are not!" he protested. "How dare you accuse me of—"

"Um, yeah, Adrian, the doc's right," the Shocker cut in. "Your hands _are _shaking."

After a little arguing, the Vulture grudgingly handed over the chainsaw to Shocker. The criminal then proceeded to slowly and carefully saw off the adamantium that was binding Ock's tentacles together. It took him nearly an hour, but finally, he was finished.

Shocker turned off the chainsaw. "It's done, Doctor."

Almost as if they were being raised from the dead, Doctor Octopus's tentacles rose up and joined their master, swaying around him. Where they rightfully belonged. Otto sighed. He felt whole again.

Then he looked at the three fellow criminals who had helped him out of this predicament. He saw the looks on their faces and rolled his eyes, groaning.

"You owe us a big favor, Doctor," Mysterio boomed.

Otto sighed again. "I know I do, friends," he said. Then his demeanor changed, and looked out the window as though he had homicidal intent. "I also owe someone a certain... _repayment_," he said, hissing the last word as his hands curled into fists.

**To Be Continued...**


End file.
